Introduction to Social Media in E-commerce
In the current digital era, social media has become a major factor in the expansion of e-commerce businesses. Platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and Pinterest are more than just a place for businesses to engage with their audience; they have advanced tools to facilitate selling to customers within the platform. Here’s how to start an e-commerce business using social media:
How to Use Facebook and Instagram for E-commerce
1. Choosing the Right Platform for Your Business
Instagram: Perfect for those products that are visually appealing (fashion, beauty, home decor, etc.). Instagram Shopping will allow businesses to tag the product within posts/stories. Facebook:
Facebook Shops will allow you to list and sell your products to customers on your Business Page. Facebook Marketplace is also a great option for selling locally.
TikTok: Great for the younger, trend-savvy audiences. TikTok Shoppable Ads and partnerships with Shopify allow businesses to sell directly on TikTok.
Pinterest: A visually–heavy site that is great for discovery-minded shopping. Pinterest allows businesses to create ‘Buyable Pins‘ and drive traffic to your e-commerce store.
2. Optimize Your Social Media Profiles
Professional Branding: A good brand presence is established by having a clear profile image (brand logo), a great cover image, and a bio that explains your brand’s value proposition.
Contact Information: Ensure that you have your contact information (email, phone number) clearly available and, if possible, a link to your website or a page where your online store is available.
Call to Action (CTA): Include a CTA in your bio (e.g., “Shop Now” or “Check Out Our Collection”) so that users can click-through to your product page or e-commerce site.
3. Leverage Social Media Advertising
Targeted Ads: Social media platforms provide detailed targeting options (age, gender, location, interests, etc.). This can help you be assured that your ads are reaching the most relevant audience.Retargeting:
Use retargeting ads to get in front of users who have already shown interest in your products (visited your site, or added items to their carts but did not finish or complete the purchase).
Shoppable Posts: On sites such as Instagram and Facebook, you are able to create posts that directly link to your product pages, providing a seamless shopping experience for your customers.
4. Create Engaging Content
Product demonstrations and instructional videos: Utilize video content to illustrate your products. Show how they work, how they solve problems, or how they can be part of consumers’ daily lives.
Behind-the-scenes content: Show people a glimpse of your products being made, your office space, or an example of your business activities follows your products in practice to provide a human touch to your brand.
User-generated content: Encourage your customers to take photos or videos of them using your products, without connecting you to the products, show people just living life alone with your products. You cannot obtain this social proof for yourself, and either way, share those photos and videos to get that social proof for the daily moments people use your products in their lives. Seasonal, trends, or timeliness content: Take into account trends, holidays, or seasonal promotions that tie into time or make your content meaningful to get the most timely or relevance in your promotional/items subscription post.
5. Build Relationships with Influencers
Locate Appropriate Influencers: Collaborate with influencers who share your brand‘s values and are followed by an audience that aligns with your target audience.
Micro-Influencers: Collaborating with micro-influencers (those with slightly smaller audiences that are highly engaged) can be beneficial. They usually have higher levels of engagement and can create a more authentic connection with followers.
Affiliate Programs: Create an affiliate marketing program where influencers receive commission for each sale. A commission incentivizes the influencer to actively promote your product.
